Post your coral warfare pictures

TheDragonsReef

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You hear it pretty often in tanks with lots of colonies, "how do you get them to grow so close without killing each other?" And the answer is well sometimes they do.

Eventually even if you do prune and frag your corals back, in a healthy environment they will eventually collide. Its amazing that animals that grow so slowly and are unable to move on their own still manage to fight to the death. Whether through chemical warfare or simply overgrowing their opponents lets see those fights. Post your coral battles and who won the fight!


I have a massive 14in bubble coral, here it is annihilating some mushrooms and palys that started growing too close
InShot_20220123_203018674.jpg




Acropora vs birdsnest. The acro has been taking out any tip of the birdsnest that gets too close. Here you can actually see the acros mesenterial filaments attacking the birdsnest in the center of the picture

InShot_20220123_202835048.jpg




This is actually a 4 way fight, the encrusting monti, a cyphestrea, zoanthids and a birdsnest all fighting for this territory. The Aoi zoas are the losers here but everything else is holding its own. Where the cyphestrea contacts the monti and birdnest it does kill small sections, but both of them seem to just be willing to grow over the cyphestrea.
InShot_20220123_202723150.jpg



This poor acro frag is being suffocated by the zoas and colt coral. Ill be cutting them back soon
InShot_20220123_202620258.jpg




A wave of zoas has begun to surround the base of this anacropora. Ive cut them back once previously. Im monitoring them closely but i feel without intervention they will kill it
InShot_20220123_202523479.jpg





Green staghorn vs montipora. Once the monti touched the stag it was instant regret. This staghorn seems to kill any sps it touches, but hammers in the tank have done some pieces of it in with ease.
InShot_20220123_202414128.jpg




Monti vs favia
Heres a case of if you cant beat them, grow over them. The favia stung some pieces of the monti originally, then the monti started growing over it. I have to regularly cut the monti or it wouldve completely encased the favia.

InShot_20220123_202235813.jpg





May not look like it but this is a battlefield. I put the pandoras here only cause they had no where to spread.

On the right that green monti cap grows at plague proportions and grows over everything. I have to cut 3-5in of growth monthly.

To the left is a hammer, south is a duncan, and to the north is a digitata and acropora. The pandoras have started climbing the acro but theyre easy enough to cut off of it.

the duncan beats the pandoras, green cap gorws over everything, pandoras beat the acros.
InShot_20220123_202059140.jpg


Further up the same green monti cap is seen here growing over branches in the back of this acro and digitata to the left
InShot_20220123_201221681.jpg



Montipora digitata growing peacefully alongside the montipora stellata. The base of the digi does seem to be trying to grow over the base of the stellata on the left.
InShot_20220123_201530699.jpg




This hammer and duncan dont seem to bother each other but the montipora growing down the center gets the wrath of both.
InShot_20220123_201953700.jpg






Hard to see in this picture but what i belive is a psammocora(?) Took out the nearest branch of the acropora.
InShot_20220123_201715431.jpg




Acro vs montipora digitata
It was the touch of death, as soon as the acro made contact the digi took a nice blow

InShot_20220123_201419707.jpg




Monti. Stellata vs monti. Digitata

They seem deal equal damage on contact but continue to grow into each other
InShot_20220123_201046056.jpg




Wall hammer vs mushroom. This hammer tries to sting the mushrooms but rarely makes contact. After some more growth from the hammer the shrooms will fall for sure.

IMG_20220121_111936_550.jpg
 
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OrchidMiss

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You hear it pretty often in tanks with large colonies, "how do you get them to grow so close without killing each other?" And the answer is well sometimes they do.

Eventually even if you do prune and frag your corals back, in a healthy environment they will eventually collide. Its amazing that animals that grow so slowly and are unable to move on their own still manage to fight to the death. Whether through chemical warfare or simply overgrowing their opponents lets see those fights. Post your coral battles and who won the fight!


I have a massive 14in bubble coral, here it is annihilating some mushrooms and palys that started growing too close
InShot_20220123_203018674.jpg




Acropora vs birdsnest. The acro has been taking out any tip of the birdsnest that gets too close. Here you can actually see the acros mesenterial filaments attacking the birdsnest in the center of the picture

InShot_20220123_202835048.jpg




This is actually a 4 way fight, the encrusting monti, a cyphestrea, zoanthids and a birdsnest all fighting for this territory. The Aoi zoas are the losers here but everything else is holding its own. Where the cyphestrea contacts the monti and birdnest it does kill small sections, but both of them seem to just be willing to grow over the cyphestrea.
InShot_20220123_202723150.jpg



This poor acro frag is being suffocated by the zoas and colt coral. Ill be cutting them back soon
InShot_20220123_202620258.jpg




A wave of zoas has begun to surround the base of this anacropora. Ive cut them back once previously. Im monitoring them closely but i feel without intervention they will kill it
InShot_20220123_202523479.jpg





Green staghorn vs montipora. Once the monti touched the stag it was instant regret. This staghorn seems to kill any sps it touches, but hammers in the tank have done some pieces of it in with ease.
InShot_20220123_202414128.jpg




Monti vs favia
Heres a case of if you cant beat them, grow over them. The favia stung some pieces of the monti originally, then the monti started growing over it. I have to regularly cut the monti or it wouldve completely encased the favia.

InShot_20220123_202235813.jpg





May not look like it but this is a battlefield. I put the pandoras here only cause they had no where to spread.

On the right that green monti cap grows at plague proportions and grows over everything. I have to cut 3-5in of growth monthly.

To the left is a hammer, south is a duncan, and to the north is a digitata and acropora. The pandoras have started climbing the acro but theyre easy enough to cut off of it.

the duncan beats the pandoras, green cap gorws over everything, pandoras beat the acros.
InShot_20220123_202059140.jpg


Further up the same green monti cap is seen here growing over branches in the back of this acro and digitata to the left
InShot_20220123_201221681.jpg



Montipora digitata growing peacefully alongside the montipora stellata. The base of the digi does seem to be trying to grow over the base of the stellata on the left.
InShot_20220123_201530699.jpg




This hammer and duncan dont seem to bother each other but the montipora growing down the center gets the wrath of both.
InShot_20220123_201953700.jpg






Hard to see in this picture but what i belive is a psammocora(?) Took out the nearest branch of the acropora.
InShot_20220123_201715431.jpg




Acro vs montipora digitata
It was the touch of death, as soon as the acro made contact the digi took a nice blow

InShot_20220123_201419707.jpg




Monti. Stellata vs monti. Digitata

They seem deal equal damage on contact but continue to grow into each other
InShot_20220123_201046056.jpg




Wall hammer vs mushroom. This hammer tries to sting the mushrooms but rarely makes contact. After some more growth from the hammer the shrooms will fall for sure.

IMG_20220121_111936_550.jpg
Excellent photos!! I see almost all of these in my 55!!
I've learned SO much from my first tank and coral placement!
Thank you for sharing these!!
 

thatmanMIKEson

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Whats the lesson here?
Just go all in and enjoy the war? I've never had a battle like that. im curious how much/often you have to prune? and do you wish you had never put entrusting monti's in your tank?

That was a great write up, with great pictures to go with it, thanks!
 
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TheDragonsReef

TheDragonsReef

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Whats the lesson here?
Just go all in and enjoy the war? I've never had a battle like that. im curious how much/often you have to prune? and do you wish you had never put entrusting monti's in your tank?

That was a great write up, with great pictures to go with it, thanks!
I wouldnt really say there's a lesson here. But i definitely try to place them with corals that shouldn't be able to completely wipe a colony. Like i don't let anything im afraid to lose near any of my euphyllia.

Im typically cutting something weekly. The coral i cut most is my green monti cap.

I dont regret any of the encrusting montis and i have 4 or 5 in there. I just try to plan for future growth and always place them near edges so the plate off the side. If i feel that they over reach where i want ill put a layer of expoxy over the section i want to kill off.

I do regret the placement of some of my zoas like near the anacropora but that's about it.

And thanks i thought itd make for a fun thread!
 

Karen00

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What amazing photos everyone has posted and very interesting to read! I guess this gives a new meaning to "silent but deadly". :)
 
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